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Abu Hawash’s victory
RAMZY BAROUD explains how one Palestinian hunger striker forced historic Israeli concessions from his prison bed
Palestinians attend a protest in solidarity with Hisham Abu Hawash January 2 2022. The Arabic reads: ‘Those starving behind bars feed the universe with dignity’

AS soon as media reports emerged regarding a deal between Palestinian prisoner Hisham Abu Hawash and the Israeli prison authorities, Israeli extremists, led by Knesset member Itamar Ben-Gvir, angrily raided the Assaf Harofeh Hospital where Abu Hawash was being held.

A Palestinian political activist, Abu Hawash, 41, is a father of five. He was arrested by the Israeli army from his home in the town of Dura near Al-Khalil (Hebron) in October 2020. For the last consecutive 141 days, prior to the agreement, Abu Hawash has staged a hunger strike, which will go down in the history of Palestinian resistance as one of the longest and arguably, most consequential.

Ben-Gvir and other right-wing Israelis were enraged by the government's decision to release Abu Hawash on February 26, at a time that the Naftali Bennet coalition is labouring to demonstrate its pro-Jewish settlers’ credentials and overall hard-line policies against any form of Palestinian resistance. Indeed, for many Israelis, any such compromise is considered an outright defeat for Israel and an unquestionable victory for Palestinians.  

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